Dare
by oh-the-linsanity
Summary: The tale of how Lin Beifong got her scars.


Dare

.

"I should have listened to my mother."

Bumi laughed wildly. "Aw, come on Linny bear, it's not that cold!"

Lin disagreed. The wind whipped wildly in her face as Appa soared through the freezing air, bound for the South Pole tundra. She lacked proper gear; Aang promised to give her some things when they arrived there, but in the meanwhile she was stuck with her somewhat thin tunic. Tenzin noticed how she fought to keep her teeth from chattering and how she folded her feet under her legs and sat on her hands to keep them warm. Silently, he shrugged off his long red nomad robe and slung it over Lin's shoulder, shooting Bumi a dirty look.

His brother made kissy faces in mockery.

Kya slapped Bumi in the arm, rolling her eyes; but a gentle smile was on her face. "Leave her alone," she whispered.

Bumi just laughed harder. He threw his head back before looking to the top of the Bison's head, where he spotted his father at the reigns. The blue of his arrow melted into the afternoon blue sky and he swore he saw the sun's reflection in his bald head. He eventually turned back to Lin. "You were the one who decided to tag along."

Lin seethed, forgoing her efforts to hide her discomfort. "You asked me!" She spat through chattering teeth. Tenzin simply wrapped the cloak tighter around her, a faint blush on his cheeks.

The ride continued in a smilar fashion: Lin biting her tongue to keep from complaining and Bumi laughing at her discomfort. Tenzin took to reading and Kya took to singing and by the time they reached the South Pole, Lin thought even Aang looked relieved.

He jumped off the bison and greeted his waiting wife, who had arrived a few days earlier by boat. He placed a small kiss to the crown of her head. "Hello, sweetheart," he said.

Unsatisfied, she pulled him down to her level and kissed him firmly on the mouth. When she pulled away, she smiled slyly. "Now that's a hello," she whispered.

"Ewwww, Oogies!"

Katara whipped around and saw her brother making silly faces with her son. "Sokka!"

The two of them laughed, continuing to mock Katara and Aang.

Lin was quick to find a parka and proper boots. She was all smiles as she caught up with her family and friends. She played a few games of Pai Sho with Sokka and then she played Four Nations with Tenzin and Bumi while Kya sat behind her and braided her hair in traditional Water Tribe style. They went penguin sledding and had snowball fights and even Lin made snow spirits. When dinner came, the adults all went off to eat and catch up with Politics and business, leaving the kids to do whatever they wanted.

Lin was just in the middle of a conversation about her earthbending training when Bumi bounded in, that damn wicked grin on his face. His stomach was oddly lumped and Lin could see the traces of what looked like a bottle underneath his shirt.

Kya perked up. "Did you score the rum?"

Bumi shushed her. "Shh, of course I did!" he whispered harshly before the grin returned. "Now, let's get out of here before they notice it's been swiped." Bumi pulled Tenzin up by his collar and began dragging him to the door. Kya playfully tugged on Lin's new braids before she dragged her out as well.

.

The cave was strangely warm.

Kya waterbent a few chunks of ice away and they all crawled in, away from the small snowstorm that was brewing outside. Even in her parka, Lin was quite cold, but she tried to ignore it as she smushed herself next to Tenzin. Bumi struck a match and started a fire. It was somewhat warm in the cave, yes, but it was still much too cold; her teeth chattered. But she could practically feel Tenzin's sweaty palms as his hands came to eventually wrap around her waist.

Bumi opened the bottle with his teeth, grinning as he took the first sip. He didn't as much as grimace before he howled, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "Man, that's good stuff!" He handed it to Kya, who sipped it calmly. When it got to Tenzin he rolled his eyes before handing it to Lin.

He hesitated.

"…I don't think it's such a good idea."

Lin chuckled, yanking the bottle from his fingers. "I'm not going to get piss drunk like your siblings—just enough so I can feel _warm." _She tried to take the bottle away from Tenzin again, but this time he yanked back, taking a large swig instead.

"Aww yeah! Join the party, little bro!" Bumi cheered.

Lin stifled a laugh as she watched Tenzin's face contort with disgust. "This is even more terrible than that union and banana juice dad drinks."

Kya hummed. "That stuffs pretty good if you ask me."

"Yeah, you would."

Lin finally snagged the bottle, fighting her own grimace as the liquid scorched down her throat—but thank the spirits it was warm.

The bottle was passed around, mostly between Kya and Bumi—but as Lin discovered, both those siblings could hold their liquor well. They were a little loopy and talkative, but they didn't lose their intelligence or decent sense of vocabulary. Things were funnier than they usually were and every time she felt the feeling slip away, Lin would take just one sip to have a little of that warmth come crawling back. Eventually, Bumi leaned forward, and when he took a deep breath, she found his breath reeked of rum.

"Alright—truth or dare!"

Kya laughed, making a weak attempt to swat at her brother. "That's such a terrible idea!"

Bumi waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Which is precisely why we're playing!" He turned to Tenzin. "Truth or dare?"

Lin decided it was the rum because he only hesitated for a few seconds before he said, "Truth."

"Do you like Lin?"

Lin felt Tenzin tense. He started to move his hand from around her waist but he stopped and instead, held her tighter.

"Yes."

Bumi howled and Kya cheered. "About time!" He and his sister shared a high five. "Told you all we had to do was get him tipsy!"

"This was all a set up?" Tenzin snapped.

"You bet!"

Tentatively Tenzin looked down at Lin. She looked back up at him and smiled, rolling her eyes. She nudged him in the arm playfully before she looked down, trying to hide her blush.

Kya sat up, grabbing the bottle in the corner. "Alright, my turn!" She took a swig. "Lin, truth or dare?"

Her answer was immediate—she was always up for a good challenge. "Dare."

"Kiss him!"

So she did.

His mouth was sticky with rum and his lips were chapped from the cold. She was inexperienced and had no idea what she was doing but she grabbed him by the collar and pressed her mouth fiercely to his. At first he was shocked—she felt his whole body go rigid, but then slowly she felt him relax and he kissed her back, short and sweet.

When she pulled away, she grinned, a blush on both their cheeks.

She wasn't cold anymore.

.

The game continued for awhile. Bumi took a dare each time, which including licking the cave wall, downing the rest of the bottle and kissing his own brother's cheek. Kya ended up spilling all her secrets, including a more serious one about bloodbending. Tenzin stuck to truth, and was mostly bombarded with his history with Lin. Lin took to dares as well—she wasn't about to let Bumi show her up. A few of them involved kissing Tenzin—not that she minded, but one of them was the ever so lame, "I dare you to tell the truth."

She sighed, rolling her eyes. "Alright, what do you want to know?"

Bumi clumsily reached over and slapped at her wristbands. "Have you mastered these little metal-rope things yet?"

She quickly recoiled, grabbing and tugging at the contraptions. They were hand-made by her mother, given to her a few months ago on her fourteenth birthday. She had begun practice with them—she would try to shoot them out and hit targets, wrap around objects you name it—but she hadn't quite…mastered it.

Her answer was meek, and she didn't like it. "No."

From outside, they all heard a loud howl.

It startled all of them, including Bumi, but he wasn't fazed for long. He turned to Kya. "You know what that is?" But he knew the answer.

Kya pushed her bangs out of her face, looking Lin dead in the eye. "That, you hear, is a wild polar-bear dog. Extremely hard to hunt down and kill." She petted the furs of her parka. "They make great furs." She suddenly crawled over, drawing them all near. "Water Tribe legend has it that every full moon, the biggest, baddest, polar-bear dog ever comes out to stalk its prey." She looked left and right, as if someone would hear the secret. "Sokka says no one's been able to catch it! It's a menace! He said he saw it once—eyes like ice and teeth like icicles. It's angry and mean and it could _kill you." _She snapped her fingers. "Just like that!"

Lin scoffed. "Yeah, right."

Bumi held up his hand. "No, no it's true! Uncle Sokka calls it "Hama""

"Bumi," Tenzin scolded. "No." His eyes slid to Kya, whose hands are folded in her lap. She curled her fingers, just staring before she looked up and gave a weak smile.

"Well, whatever it is, it's deadly."

The dog howled again.

Lin started playing with the metal wires coiled underneath her wristbands. "Doesn't seem so scary to me—it's just a dog, right?"

Bumi's eyes were lit with mischief. "Truth or dare?" He asked.

Tenzin's eyes narrowed; he could see where this was going. "Bumi, don't you dare—"

"_I _wouldn't choose dare—" he smiled. "But then again, it's not my decision." He turned back to Lin. "I ask again: Truth or dare?"

Her lips turned up in a half smile. "Dare."

"Go get it."

So she did.

.

"Lin, please, don't be foolish!"

She ignored Tenzin as she crawled out of the cave. "Calm down, I'll be just fine. Like I said—it's just a dog, how scary can it be?"

"No, you don't _understand—"_

"Oh, hush up! She's a Beifong! If anyone can do it, she can!" Bumi exclaimed.

They all filed out of the cave and into the storm—the wind had picked up significantly and a shiver ran down her spine. The sky was dark—the sun had had set for the two hours that it would and there was nothing but blinding white as snow whipped in her face and caught in her hair and eyelashes.

She constantly swiped her brow clean, looking for the beast—she didn't even know what it looked like! A polar-bear dog was white, she assumed, and medium sized with fur—

Lin heard a growl.

She twisted each and every direction, but she didn't see anything. She heard Tenzin's cries of objection and Bumi's cheers of encouragement. She walked slowly, her arms ready to attack with her cables. The wind was loud in her ear and she was downright freezing—she was out of her element and it made her nervous. But a dare was a dare, and if her mother taught her anything, it was to never back down from a challenge.

The loudest vibrations shook through her feet; a horrifying growl ripped through her ears.

From behind her, her friends screamed; but she couldn't hear it over the sound of her own shouts.

She couldn't _see _it—but she could feel it. It was stomping around and circling her, ready to pounce. There was white everywhere—but Lin couldn't tell what was snow and what was the beast. She flung out her cables foolishly, trying to grip something. Finally, one of them grazed rough fur and she retracted the cable, ready to fight.

It stared at her, eyes like ice.

She flung the cables out one more time, but it was useless. She felt the wind get knocked out of her as the back of her skull collided heavily with the icy ground. A large paw pressed down on her chest. When Lin looked up she saw it, tall and menacing. It bore its teeth, covered in crystal ice before it let out a loud growl. It held up its other paw, large with sharp claws.

"_LIN!"_

It attacked.

.

Through the storm, Bumi had a hard time seeing. But when the beast raised its paw and struck, he could see the pain and blood on her face as she screamed. "_LIN!"_

All three of them rushed in to help. Kya began melting ice into water for her to use and she began slapping painful whips in the polar-bear dog's direction, careful to avoid Lin. She saw the little earthbender struggle to break free; she was dodging the other swipes and eventually she scrambled to her feet.

Half of Lin's face was completely covered in blood.

Kya knew she had to get to her, to help her and heal her. "Bumi, Tenzin, give me some cover—get it away from her!" She continued to use her waterbending as defense as she tried to grab Lin.

Bumi whipped out his boomerang and began shouting and screaming while Tenzin redirected the already violent winds to the dog's direction. The boomerang knocked the dog in the head. It turned, its teeth in an ugly snarl, before it started toward the boys, a new target for him to maul.

Tenzin gave one last strong blast the dog's way; it was blown back several feet and instead of getting up and charging toward them, all three of them were surprised when it whimpered and stalked off into the storm.

Tenzin rushed over to Kya and scooped Lin to his arms. It was absolutely _horrific._ The ground where she was attacked was marron, stained with her blood. Her face was bright red, blood layering her face like paint. She was unconscious by now, no doubt from shock, and he cradled her close, not caring about the alarming amount of blood that soaked into his robes. Kya dragged her brother to the cave. "I have to heal her now!"

"B-but Mom,"

"Tenzin, there's no time!"

They rushed to the cave as fast as they could. Bumi grabbed Lin from Tenzin's arms and wiggled them both into the cave, scratching his sides in sacrifice for the safety. He put her down in the middle and Kya rushed over and began healing her.

Slowly, the blood on her face stopped pooling out and it crusted over, dark red and brown. She shook from the damp cold and her eyes were still closed. Kya untied her hair band and wrapped it around Lin's face—she noticed two, long _deep _gashed underneath all the crusted blood.

Kya bit her lip. She was still learning how to heal from her mother, and while she was good at the actual _healing _part, she had not yet managed to perfect it; she struggled with mending tissue completely.

Lin's injuries would surely scar.

When she was stable enough, Tenzin collected her in his arms and started out of the cave. "I'm taking her to mom—she can finish up."

Bumi reached out, grabbing his shoulder. "Bro, the storm is still pretty bad, just be careful. Here, why don't I—"

Tenzin turned around his face red with anger, eyes stinging with tears. "Haven't you done enough!" he roared.

For the first time, Bumi thought he might have finally gone too far.

.

"Son! There you are! Haha, you missed Sokka—what happened!" Aang shouted once he saw Tenzin run in, Lin in his arms. His hands hovered over her before he gently took her from Tenzin's arms. "Katara!" He screamed.

Katara came bounding in, alarmed at her husband's tone of voice. "What, what is it?" Her eyes widened at the sight of Lin. "Oh my—Aang, go put her in our bed. Let me get some water."

Tenzin waited not so patiently as his parents went to healing Lin. His father came out eventually, his face unreadable. He finally leaned down and wiped the tears from his son's face and nodded toward the kitchen. "Come on. Come tell me what happened."

When they got to the kitchen, Bumi and Kya had made it back, wrapped in blankets and seated at the kitchen table. Sokka was boiling water for tea.

Tenzin took the farthest seat from Bumi and waited.

Sokka sighed. "What on earth happened to Lin?" he asked.

All three children stared at the ground, not bearing to meet each other's eyes. Finally, Kya mumbled. "The polar-bear dog."

The words went unheard by Aang and Sokka. "Huh?"

She lifted her head, her eyes narrow. "The polar-bear dog you so affectionately named Hama, Uncle Sokka. That's what happened."

Sokka's mouth fell open before as Aang grumbled through gritted teeth, _"What did you name it."_

Sokka snarled. "Oh, who cares what I call it! The name fits though, considering what happened!"

"Sokka!"

"Have you seen Lin's face! It's been mutilated!

Tenzin bit his tongue.

Bumi rushed over to an empty bin and threw up.

After much prying, Sokka and Aang discovered the truth—the booze, the cave, the polar-bear dog. No one mentioned that Lin encountered the thing on a dare—they only mentioned that it had found them.

Katara came out awhile later, eyes tired and smile long gone. She affectionately rubbed her son's bald head before she planted a kiss on his nose. "She's fine, sweetheart."

He looked up at her, eyes nervous. "Can I see her?"

Katara nodded. "Just don't wake her, alright? I gave her something that should keep her sleeping through most of the pain, okay?" Tenzin was out of that room like a gust of wind, ruffling papers in his wake. She turned to her other two children and noticed the remedy cups of tea in front of Kya and Bumi. "Were you two drinking?" She snapped. "What were you thinking? Going out and—"

Aang came up from behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. "We've already lectured them. I think they've had enough for one night."

Kya stood, her hands shaking. "Mom, is she okay? I mean, are her injuries…well, will they…scar?"

Katara nodded slowly. She noticed the tears welling in her daughters eyes and she quickly jogged over and wiped them away, kissing both her cheeks. "Oh, don't cry darling—you saved her life! Those marks were deep—right down to the bone. She would have in big trouble if it weren't for you."

Kya sniffled. "Really?"

Katara gave a faint smile. "Yes, really. Why, in fact, if I had been there from the start, I don't think even I could have managed to heal it without leaving a little scar. Lin's going to be just fine—you did good, Kya."

Kya buried her face into her mother's shoulder as she fell into her hug. Her eyes caught sight of Bumi on the other side of the room, face crestfallen, body shaking from the cold.

She'd never seen her brother look so defeated.

And he wasn't the one that lost the fight.

But then again, maybe he was.

.

When Lin woke the first thing she felt was a burning underneath her skin.

Instinctively, she reached up to touch it, so see what was going on, but a beefy hand gently pushed her hand back down to her side. "Don't touch it," he chided quietly.

Her eyes did their best to focus in the dim room and she made out the wild contours of Bumi's hair. His eyes reflected the fire from the candle and she noticed the odd frown on his face as he sat in the chair beside her bed.

"Bumi?" She tired lifting her head from the pillow, but it hurt too much. "W-what? Where?"

It all came back to her. The booze, the cave, the stupid dares and her stupid failure.

She cringed at the memory.

Bumi saw her discomfort and reached out to wipe away her bangs stuck to her face with sweat. "How you feeling, kid?" he asked softly.

Lin smacked her lips together. "Funny." She turned to him. "Am I drugged?"

Bumi laughed behind closed lips. "Yeah, a little bit. Mom said it'll help with the pain, so just go with it."

She looked around—the room was empty. "Where's Tenzin? And Kya? Are they okay?"

He nodded and pressed her back down on the bed when she tried to sit up. "They're just fine. Tenzin and I chased the dog away and Kya got you out of there. But Lin—"

He stopped, gnawing on his lip in hesitation.

"What?" she begged. "What is it?"

He pointed to her marred cheek. "It's gonna scar—bad."

They fell quiet. She stared at Bumi as he played with the hem of his shirt, his collar, anything to avoid looking at her. Finally, Lin chuckled. He looked up, confused, surprised. "All the more cooler, huh?"

Bumi shook his head, laughter bubbling up in his throat. "Man, kid, you really are something." His smiles weren't staying for long—the frown returned. "Gosh, Lin, I really am sorry."

_I don't care what I look like—and neither should you. I know who I am; and it doesn't rely on looks, got it?_

_Got it, mom._

"Don't be." She shrugged. "I don't care what I look like."

Bumi snorted. "Yeah, yeah, good old Toph's teachings." Lin watched as a soft smile bloomed on his face, unlike any of the other ones she'd ever seen on him. His lips were kind and his eyes were gentle and there wasn't a drop of insanity or reckless abandon in sight. "But if it counts, you're beautiful…I see why my brother likes you so much."

Lin blushed.

He reached over and tapped her forehead. "But if you ask me, the scars make you look badass—more so than your mom."

Lin tried to push past the burn on her cheek and imagine how they would look. "You think?" she asked, and she broke out in a toothy grin.

This time, Bumi laughed, a laugh fitted for a lunatic. "Aw, you bet!" His excitement grew. "Just you wait! One day, once you've mastered those cables, you'll be the greatest metalbender ever! And I'll be able to say I knew you when!"

Lin looked away and stared at her wrists—her wristlets were gone. "Greatest metalbender ever…"

Bumi watched as her eyes drooped, and the corners of her lips fell. "Hey,Lin."

"Hmm."

"Truth or dare?"

"Bumi, not now, please—"

"Come on. Just this one last time, hmm?"

Lin sighed. But even though she was tired and worn, Lin Beifong did not back down from a dare—no matter what may have happened. And for some strange reason, as she watched Bumi's smile grow and his hair seemingly puff up even more so, she suspected he knew this as well.

"…dare."

He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "I dare you to become the greatest metalbender in the world."

Lin couldn't help it. She laughed. She laughed until she remembered her pain and then she laughed more. Bumi was right there with her, doubling over in the chair and wiping stray tears from his cheeks.

"Challenge accepted."

.

_fin._


End file.
